Leadership issues
From LLN
Leadership issues
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Commentaries on leadership that don't fit neatly into other articles.
- Note: The LLN Peer Panel that originally appeared here is now part of Library leadership issues - Peer panels
Facing tomorrow's challenges calls for right-brain thinking
- by Leslie Dillon from Leader's Digest June 2009
According to Daniel Pink, author of A Whole New Mind and The Adventures of Johnny Bunko, responding to the challenges of tomorrow’s world requires more right-brain thinking, “for example, processing things all at once instead of in sequence, interpreting facial expressions or synthesizing rather than analyzing.” Abilities that are characteristic of the left hemisphere—logical, linear, sequential skills—are still necessary, “but they’re no longer sufficient. Artistry, empathy, inventiveness, big-picture thinking … matter most.”
The three main drivers of change in today’s world are Asia, automation, and abundance. Routine jobs are disappearing from advanced countries. This kind of work will continue to race to wherever it can be done most cheaply—either to Asia or to be automated.
In a world of material abundance, it’s more important to come up with new ideas—like hulu.com or the iPod—than it is to build better televisions. And those right-brain abilities like “design, storytelling, synthesis, empathy and pattern recognition” aren’t easy to outsource. Even traditionally left-brained professions now demand right-brained skills. Companies hiring engineers are looking for people “who can innovate, communicate, thrive in a multicultural environment and work with a sense of passion.” Jefferson School of Medicine in Philadelphia is trying to teach students to empathize because there are indications that the more empathetic a doctor is, the better patient outcomes are. And Yale and Harvard take med students to art museums to enhance their observation skills, hoping to make them better diagnosticians.
(“The pink prescription: facing tomorrow’s challenges calls for right-brain thinking,” Knowledge@Wharton, Jun 10, 2009.)
- [Editor's note: “In a world of material abundance”? What world is that, exactly, in 2009--or in any year for around 90% of the world's people?]
Breakthrough ideas
- by Leslie Dillon from Leader's Digest February 2009
Harvard Business Review recently listed some breakthrough ideas addressing areas that business and other leaders must contend with, such as decision making, hiring top talent, disruptive technologies and developing new business models. Here are a few:
Just because I’m nice, don’t assume I’m dumb
When people first meet other people, they quickly rate them on a scale of warmth and competence. Incorrect judgments can cause managers to trust the wrong people and undermine organizations’ efforts to build effective teams and retain good employees. Also warmth and competence are often seen as inversely related. A surplus of one trait seems to imply a deficit of the other.
How to make better judgments about people? Don’t take shortcuts. Avoid stereotypes. Become aware of how you form impressions. Evaluate warmth and competence separately; they’re not mutually exclusive.
Launching a better brain
Our education system and workplaces “encourage people to acquire domain expertise” rather than learn new things. How to rekindle childlike creativity? Cognitive exercise helps rewire your brain. Business leaders need to find pursuits that transcend their routines and challenge their brains. “Cognitive exercise will keep you agile, adaptive, and fit for life, in business and beyond.”
The IKEA effect: when labor leads to love
Research has shown that a person’s labor enhances his or her affection for its results. “When people construct products themselves, from bookshelves to Build-a-Bears, they come to overvalue their (often poorly made) creations.” In organizational dynamics, this can contribute to the “sunk cost effect,” where managers “devote resources to (sometimes failing) projects” that they have invested in, and to the “not-invented-here syndrome,” where good ideas developed elsewhere are discounted in favor of ”(sometimes inferior) internally developed ideas.” Your much-loved, highly-valued ideas may not be valued as highly by your coworkers--or your customers.
Leadership - what is it really all about?
- by Michelle McLean, excerpted and adapted from this post on Connecting librarian. Used by permission. McLean works at Casey Cardinia Library Corporation (a public library service in the suburbs of Melbourne, Australia).
I have been working in public libraries since I graduated from university in 1985 (just need a Bachelor’s degree in Australia to work as a librarian). Of my 22 years in libraries, I have worked full-time for 13 and now half-time for 9 since I had my children. Now that my youngest is about to start school, I am thinking about what I want to do with the rest of my career, which until the last year or so was on cruise control.
I spoke to my Library Director seeking advice about working towards my future and he asked me to consider what I wanted to do. I have some thoughts about where I would like to go, but the one thing I am sure of is that it will involve leadership in some form.
Leading and learning
I have been a leader of some sort throughout my career. I have not always lead well as some of my past co-workers could well testify, but I have learnt well. I am not officially a manager at this stage of my career, but have been so long with my library and in a wide variety of roles, including managerial, that I take on an unofficial leadership role and am sought for advice, opinions, assistance on a regular basis. Not that I do anything to undermine the existing leadership.
So I got to thinking about what I should do to develop my leadership skills, which got me thinking more about leadership. What is it? What skills make a good leader and what extras make them great? Having said that, I think that it would be awesome beyond all belief to be considered a good leader, I have no illusions about being great.
Then, whilst watching Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, a favourite of my kids and I, my daughter asked me if Leonardo was the leader because he was the eldest brother. A natural assumption from my 8 year old. However, he is leader because of other abilities, including recognising and utilising the skills of his brothers. As his brother Michelangelo pointed out, he also had the hardest job because Raphael could leave the thinking to Leonardo, Donatello was free to dream and Michelangelo was free to clown because their big brother Leonardo took on all that responsibility. If you know the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, you will understand. Wow, wisdom on leadership from a kid’s cartoon!
I have also learnt much from my friends in the blogosphere, musing about their leadership experiences. They are far too many to list here, but to you all I give thanks--you have given me a great start.
A good leader...
So what have I been learning about leadership from all these musings? Here’s the very shortest beginnings of what I know will be an ever growing list, from which I hope to keep learning.
A good leader:
- knows people
- is able to follow
- is able to take the lead when required
- is able to motivate those being lead
- is able to lead without being obvious about it most of the time
- never asks staff to do something they wouldn’t do
- sees the big picture
- is able to dream
- gets the job done
- brings the best out of the people they lead
- can utilise the people they have for the best results for everyone
- is responsible
- takes pride in their team
- gives credit where credit is due
- is always learning
- adapts to change
- is able to inspire people
- takes risks
- is committed (or ought to be :) )
- also serves
- has integrity
And why do I need to know this? Because I plan to be working in libraries for another 30 years or so and can’t and won’t stay at this level for the rest of those days. For me to progress further, leadership is one of the skill sets I will need to develop further. I have a good foundation, built on pain, experience and the patience and teaching of many good staff and managers--all to whom I give my sincere apologies for my mistakes and my heartfelt thanks for the lessons they taught me--many without knowing they were doing so.
And knowing the pain that can be and is involved in leadership, why would I want to go down that path? Because of the great satisfaction that also comes out of doing it and doing it well. It truly is a joy to lead a team who works well, beyond expectations and enjoys doing so. That’s not easy to come by, takes a lot of hard work but is so worth it in the end, when you see the awesome results that can be achieved.
And so I look to you now too, to add to my short list. What leadership skills or abilities do you see as being key to a good or great leader. I am sure that you have also had some inspirational leaders in your lives, what lessons did they teach you about doing it right? Can it be done right? Can it be learnt or is it inherent?
Related articles
- Qualities of successful leaders - Other thoughts on the qualities that make people good and great leaders.
- Reflections on library leadership - Notes from various blogs.
- The nature of leadership - More notes on the essence of leadership.
